No Shop Talk
by Jestress
Summary: Filler for Over the Limit. Things are awkward between Lee and Amanda, and Lee has to decide what he's going to do about it.
1. Nail-Biter

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Scarecrow and Mrs. King or any of its characters (Much as it pains me to admit it), but it's fun to play with them sometimes. Nobody pays me for this, but it doesn't stop me. ;)

**Explanation:** I've been following Iwsod's blog, Just Walk With Me, and some of us were talking about extra scenes that we'd like to see in the episode Over the Limit. Among the things that we'd have liked to see in that episode were more of a wrap-up with Leslie and more of Lee and Amanda, leading up to his dinner invitation. So, I decided to provide these scenes myself. (For others following this blog: See guys, I even included an explanation for the baked potato!)

I was also inspired by something that Dotty said in Playing Possum: "I know when you're troubled, Amanda. You don't eat, you don't sleep, and you bite your nails."

**No Shop Talk**

By Jestress

The debriefing was taking entirely too long, Lee thought as he drummed his fingers and stared across the conference room table at Amanda. She didn't look at him. First, she had sat across the table from him instead of sitting next to him like she usually did, and now she wasn't even looking at him.

Amanda just looked at Billy as she explained how she had gotten to the cannery ahead of Lee and Francine, how she had hit Towne with a board and knocked him out, and above all, how she had shot the pulley that brought down the net on O'Keefe.

"Excellent!" Billy said, beaming. "Those shooting lessons are really starting to pay off. Keep up the good work!"

"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir," Amanda said.

Billy looked pleased, but Lee could detect less enthusiasm in Amanda's voice than normal. Praise of any kind usually caused Amanda to perk up, but not today.

"That really was great!" Francine said. "O'Keefe never even saw it coming."

"Thank you, Francine," Amanda said.

Even Francine's compliments, which were rare and only given when truly earned, failed to make Amanda do more than give her a brief smile. Amanda gave Lee the tiniest of glances and then looked away.

Lee knew that she probably hadn't liked what she'd seen in his face, but he couldn't help it. She hadn't listened to him, hadn't done what he'd told her, had taken an enormous risk all by herself, and was now sitting where he couldn't reach her, not even looking at him. Probably because she knew that if he could reach her, he'd want to shake some sense into her.

"And, from what I hear, the Sullivans are extremely grateful to you," Billy said. "Excellent work, Amanda!"

"Thank you, sir!"

The mention of the Sullivans did cause Amanda to perk up. She'd been right all along about Elizabeth, and she was proud that she was able to prove that Elizabeth had nothing to do with the bombing. Lee had to admit that Amanda had a right to be proud of that. But, there was still something that was bothering him.

Finally, the debriefing was breaking up. Billy and Francine got up from their seats, but Amanda stayed where she was. Lee had the feeling that she was waiting for him to leave before getting up. Things were still awkward between the two of them, and perhaps it would be better for them both to have some time to think before talking to each other.

As Francine left the room, Lee wanted to get up and follow her, but Billy gave Lee a hard look that kept him in his seat. Billy jerked his head toward where Amanda was sitting, still not looking at him.

The unspoken words in Billy's gaze said, "Talk to her!" They said it in the same stern tone that Billy had used earlier when he told Lee to take care of Amanda during Spring Cleaning. Lee didn't want to think how badly he'd botched that.

Billy left the conference room, shutting the door on Lee and Amanda, leaving them to talk things over. But, Lee didn't see the point. Billy was satisfied with Amanda's actions. Even Francine approved. Amanda was the hero of the hour, and there was nothing Lee wanted to say right now that anyone wanted to hear.

Lee suddenly became aware that a silent Amanda was getting up to leave the room. Silence was never a good sign in Amanda. Lee knew that from long experience. Things were going to be even more awkward between them than they already were if he didn't do something to break that silence now.

"Amanda?"

Amanda stopped and looked at him, but she still didn't say anything.

"Thanks," Lee said. It sounded lame, but that was the best thing he could think of to say.

Amanda nodded to him but didn't say anything else. She started walking again.

"Amanda?" Lee was irritated. Couldn't she see that he was making an effort here? "Are you okay?"

"Fine," Amanda said. Her voice was subdued. She looked away from him, toward the door.

"You don't sound okay," Lee said impatiently. What was she trying to do, goad him into saying something that he didn't really want to say and that she wouldn't want to hear anyway?

"You don't sound like you're happy with me," Amanda said softly.

Lee didn't like that tone of voice. It was the tone that made him feel like he'd kicked a small puppy. He hadn't heard her use it in a long time. It was the same tone she'd used when he'd chewed her out for making him go to Germany to bail her out of jail when she'd been accused of passing counterfeit money. It was the same tone she'd used when she'd almost quit the Agency after an argument with him.

Well, he'd learned. He wasn't going to argue with her.

"I'm fine," he said shortly. "I really appreciate the help you gave me and Francine."

Oh, that sounded great, he thought. The look on Amanda's face told him that he'd botched things. Again.

"I don't see why you're angry about this," Amanda said.

"I'm not angry," Lee snapped. He was going to have to say it. "It's just that I told you to go home, where you'd be _safe_!"

There, he'd said it. She always hated hearing that, and even after she saved him and Francine, he couldn't help but say it.

Amanda finally looked at him. Looked him right in the eye and said firmly, "Look, I know that you didn't want me along because I'm kind of, well, unorthodox. I mean, I know I don't always do things the way that you think I should, and I can see that you would be worried that I'd miss my shot because I'm new at this, but Lee, I've been practicing, and even though I don't like the idea of shooting someone, I'd never let O'Keefe shoot you—"

"You don't get it, do you? If you'd missed, he wouldn't have shot me, he'd have shot _you_!"

He'd raised his voice. He hadn't meant to raise his voice.

Had anyone outside the conference room heard it? A quick glance assured him that if anyone had, they were ignoring it. No one was looking at them. Amanda was still staring at him, though. A silent stare with those large, brown puppy dog eyes . . .

She was alright, Lee reassured himself, taking a deep breath. She hadn't gotten shot. She'd gotten them both through the experience. Now, he just needed to say something to help smooth things over.

"But, thanks for being there for me," Lee said. He was sincere, and he hoped that she could hear the sincerity in his voice.

"I wish you could have been there with me," Amanda said softly.

"Huh?" Lee was mystified. What was she talking about? He'd been right there the entire time. He'd seen the whole thing.

"Nothing," Amanda said. The soft tone was gone. Her gaze was direct, and her tone was business-like. "I just did what I had to do. I hope you have a nice time with Leslie."

Amanda left the room, and Lee didn't try to stop her. He wanted to. He wanted to sit her down and make her tell him what she meant by that. He wanted to tell her how reckless she'd been and how she'd scared the living daylights out of him. But, he couldn't.

It felt like there was an invisible wall between the two of them, not just the glass wall of the conference room. Something that was harder to reach across than the conference room table and was more solid than the chain-link fence that had separated them at the cannery.

He watched Amanda leave the bullpen and walk to the elevator. About halfway there, she lifted her hand to her mouth and started to nibble the end of one of her fingernails.

That was a really bad sign.

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Dinner with Leslie that night was awkward. Being on 24-hour call as part of her job, she was understanding enough when he had to duck out on her the other night. Lee had wanted to make his sudden departure the other night up to her. However, he was really too preoccupied to give Leslie his full attention.

"Are you alright, Lee?" Leslie asked. "Don't you like it?"

"Oh, no! Sorry, I mean, the dinner is wonderful. I'm just not very hungry tonight."

The problem was that Lee knew that while he sat there with Leslie's chicken parmesan in front of him, Amanda probably wasn't having any dinner at all. She had been biting her nails, and he knew what that meant. Amanda only did that when she was troubled about something. Nail biting was usually followed by a loss of appetite, and she'd start skipping meals or merely picking at her food. Worse still, Lee knew that Amanda was alone tonight.

Lee didn't worry as much about Amanda when she went home to her family. Even when troubling things were happening at work and Amanda couldn't tell her family about it, he knew that her mother would notice her mood and say something reassuring or the boys would distract her with their activities, and she'd soon be feeling better. But, tonight, Amanda had gone home to an empty house in a troubled mood that even he didn't fully understand.

"Are you feeling alright, Lee?" Leslie asked.

"Hmm? Oh, I'm fine, I just . . . I had a hard day at work, that's all."

"Oh, I know how that can be. But, the best thing to do is to leave work at work. You know, try to get it out of your mind when you're at home."

Was that what Amanda was doing? The boys weren't there to distract her and cheer her up, and her mother wasn't there to reassure her and make sure that she ate a proper meal. Amanda was usually the one who told everyone to take care of themselves, but sometimes, someone needed to remind Amanda to take care of herself.

Lee couldn't remember exactly where Amanda had said that her mother and the boys were going to be. The other day, she'd said something about her mother going to some kind of meeting or something. Was it the card club she'd joined? No, they usually met at Amanda's house. It must have been something else. The boys were at Johnny Thompson's house for his birthday party. Or was it Tommy Johnson's house for a sleepover? Lee couldn't remember now exactly what Amanda had said. Usually, Lee didn't have this much trouble keeping track of Amanda and her family's activities.

"Are you sure you're alright, Lee?" Leslie asked again. "If it's bothering you this much, perhaps you'd like to talk about it."

Talking about it was the last thing Lee wanted to do. He hadn't told Leslie yet what he did for a living, although she had the background to understand his work. Her occupation would make her an excellent match for a government agent. But, experience had taught him to be extremely careful about who to confide in. He had once thought that Eva was trustworthy and in love with him, and that had turned out to be dead wrong.

Of course, Leslie was different. She already had security clearance and an excellent professional reputation. She was also kind and understanding. At least, she seemed that way. One really had to be in diplomatic circles, or at least good at smoothing over ruffled feelings. Perhaps talking to her wouldn't be such a bad idea, after all.

"It's just that, well, I said some things to someone at work that I probably shouldn't have, and now things are kind of tense and awkward."

That was pretty vague, but Leslie nodded thoughtfully.

"And now you're trying to decide how to make things better?" Leslie asked.

"That's right," Lee said, grateful that Leslie understood.

"Who was it you offended?"

Suddenly, talking didn't seem like such a great idea. Amanda's surprise meeting with Leslie had also been awkward, and Lee wasn't sure that he should bring her up again to Leslie. Yet, they had started this conversation, and Lee knew that he had no choice but to proceed.

"Um, it was Amanda."

Leslie showed little reaction. "Did the two of you disagree on something work-related?"

"Yeah," Lee said. "We sort of disagreed about how she handled something."

"What was it?" Leslie asked.

Now, they were definitely entering dangerous territory.

"It was . . . something that I really wanted to handle myself, but at the time, I just couldn't so Amanda had to do it."

Lee thought that summed it up pretty well. He had wanted to deal with O'Keefe himself, but he had been disarmed, so Amanda had to step in to save his life and Francine's. Lee was grateful, but he was still upset that it had happened.

"Well, I'm sure that she did the best she could under the circumstances," Leslie pointed out gently. "No doubt she could have done better if you'd been there to help her, but sometimes, these things can't be helped."

"I guess you're right," Lee said.

He didn't want to say that he'd been there but he hadn't been able to help her. He wasn't even able to help himself at the time. It was kind of a blow to his pride, but that wasn't what was really bothering him.

"Amanda seems very dedicated and responsible," Leslie commented.

"Yes, she is," Lee agreed.

He had helped train Amanda. He took pleasure in watching her develop her skills and hone her instincts. More and more, she was becoming a source of pride to him.

"So, what was it that you think she did wrong?"

Back to dangerous territory.

"It wasn't so much what she did as what could have happened because of what she did," Lee said carefully.

"Did anything bad happen?"

"No, actually things turned out fine," Lee admitted.

But, they could have easily turned out horrible. That was the part that Lee couldn't forget. He rubbed his forehead to get the awful images out of his mind.

"Then, try not to worry about it," Leslie advised. "There are all sorts of 'maybes' and 'what-ifs' in life, but there's no sense in worrying about them."

"True," Lee said.

It had always been his philosophy, but lately, he'd had more trouble keeping that mindset where Amanda was concerned.

"Whatever you said to her, she probably understands that you were under stress at the time," Leslie continued. "If you say something tomorrow to let her know that you appreciate her hard work, she'll forget about whatever you said before."

"You think so?"

"I'm positive," Leslie said. "Now, stop worrying. No more shop talk. Let's just enjoy dinner."

Lee made more of an effort to enjoy Leslie's chicken parmesan, but his thoughts kept turning back to Amanda.

When she bit her fingernails, it was a sure sign that she'd skip dinner entirely if there wasn't someone there to coax her into eating something. He knew that look of hers as well as he knew the look that had told him that Amanda wasn't going to leave Elizabeth Sullivan's case alone, no matter what anyone said. He even knew it as well as he knew the look that Amanda had given him when she had left his apartment after meeting Leslie, the look that should have told him that home was the last place she was going to go, no matter what he said. That was what troubled him the most. How could he have missed that look?

Of course, he knew the answer. He'd been distracted. He'd been distracted by his insomnia and preoccupied with Leslie. And it had nearly cost Amanda her life. Twice.

"I picked up a cake for dessert from this darling little pastry shop near my hotel," Leslie said, heading to kitchen to get it.

Stop thinking about it, Lee told himself firmly. Amanda is fine. She's safe at home tonight.

Lee followed Leslie into the kitchen so that he could pour a cup of coffee for each of them. Leslie suggested that they take their dessert to the couch.

The cake was beautifully decorated with chocolate swirls and cherries in whipped cream. It tasted alright, but a little rich for Lee's taste. He couldn't help but think about the cakes Amanda made. They always had just the right amount of sweetness, moist but not too heavy. Before he'd met Amanda, he hadn't realized that there could be such a difference between store-bought and homemade.

When he'd seen Amanda leave the Agency, biting her fingernails, he considered heading over to her house that evening to see her. He'd thought that maybe, with her family gone, they could talk. Maybe he'd bring her some dinner or convince her to go somewhere with him to get something to eat. She always ate whenever he put food in front of her. A good meal and a chance to talk might fix things between them, but how could he with Leslie in the picture?

Leslie had asked some uncomfortable questions about the phone call he'd gotten from O'Keefe. Even though she hadn't pressed him too hard about it, she had subtly tried to pry some of the details of this work-related call out of him and had given him strange looks when he hadn't been forthcoming with the details. Then, there had been those comments she had made, hinting at the disappointment of not getting to surprise him with the wonderful dinner she'd made. He'd promised to make it up to her later. With a promise like that hanging, how could he slip away from her a second time to go to Amanda's?

Finishing with her dessert, Leslie put down her coffee cup and snuggled up against Lee. Lee put down his own coffee cup and put his arm around Leslie, feeling a little guilty. For the second time, Leslie had gone to great lengths to make this a pleasant evening, and he couldn't keep his mind on it . . . or her.

He hadn't been seeing Leslie very long, only a couple of weeks. It had seemed like a very long couple of weeks. They'd had fun together. At least, it seemed like they had. But, he was tired, and trying to fit dates into Leslie's hectic schedule was wearing him out. Quite often, the only time she was available was rather late. He hadn't been lying when he'd told Billy that he'd had trouble sleeping. Being overtired often made it hard for Lee to sleep.

Not eating well when she was troubled was what led to Amanda's insomnia. Most likely, she would have trouble sleeping tonight. How many times had he told her that she should eat some carbohydrates before bed to relax her and satisfy her hunger so that she could sleep? At least as many as she'd told him that he really should eat a proper breakfast, Lee thought with a wry smile.

Seeing Lee's smile, Leslie said, "I'm glad you're feeling better. I knew you would when you got your mind off work."

"Right," Lee said with another surge of guilt.

Leslie leaned forward for a kiss, and Lee obliged, trying to put Amanda out of his mind.

"I'm so looking forward to the party tomorrow night," Leslie murmured in his ear. "That dress you bought for me is so beautiful."

"I'm looking forward to seeing you in it," Lee said with a smile.

"Well, technically, you've already seen me in it," Leslie said teasingly.

"Yeah," Lee admitted.

To be honest, he didn't really know why he'd bought the dress for her, only that he couldn't shake the image of her in a black dress, like the one Amanda had worn . . .

Lee shrugged it off.

Leslie kissed him again, and he kissed her back, but his heart wasn't in it. Before, he had been too preoccupied with Leslie to think about the things he should have been thinking of. Now, all of his thoughts were on Amanda. What was she doing now?

"I don't have to get up early tomorrow," Leslie purred softly. "What would you like to do this evening?"

A couple of years ago, Lee reflected, he would have had several interesting suggestions. Even a couple of days ago, he would have been tempted to spend all night with her. But now, he just couldn't.

"I'm tired tonight, and I have things to do tomorrow," Lee said. "I think I'd like to turn in early."

"Are you sure?" Leslie asked, caressing the side of his face.

"I'm sure," Lee said firmly, easing Leslie gently away from his chest.

"Something is wrong, isn't it?" Leslie asked, studying Lee's face.

"No, I'm just tired," Lee insisted.

Leslie nodded thoughtfully. "Are you still coming to the embassy party with me tomorrow?"

"Of course," Lee said quickly. Maybe too quickly.

"There are a lot people I'd like you to meet," Leslie said. "I'll have to introduce you to my associate Sam Davis, Barbara Gregson from the State Department, and Andre Filipov . . ."

Lee felt tired just thinking about it. He'd been to embassy parties before. Endless introductions to people whose names and faces blurred together. And they went on for hours.

He'd almost forgotten that this would be a working date for Leslie. With all of her diplomatic duties and social obligations, they probably wouldn't have a chance to share a dance. It was a pity. That dress had looked so beautiful on the dance floor. No, wait, that had been Amanda's dress.

Lee rubbed his eyes tiredly.

"You're not really with me, are you?" Leslie asked softly.

"I'm sorry," Lee said. "I'm so tired, I'm zoning out."

Leslie looked at him seriously. "You're having second thoughts, aren't you?"

"About what?" Lee asked, completely at sea.

"About the embassy party. Maybe about me."

"No!"

"Lee," Leslie said gently, "your mind is somewhere else and on something else that has nothing to do with me."

"That doesn't mean that I'm having second thoughts."

It was too early in their relationship to be doing that, Lee thought. He hadn't even fully decided what his first thoughts were yet.

He'd met Leslie by accident while working on a fairly minor assignment that Amanda hadn't been part of. Lee had been surprised that he and Leslie had hit it off so well on first acquaintance. Leslie had a kind of familiarity that made him feel comfortable with her right away. Yet, there was still something about her that made him wonder if they were really right for each other.

"I suspect that your mind may be on someone else, too," Leslie said.

"Why do you say that?" Lee asked warily.

"I saw the way you and Amanda were acting around each other the other day," Leslie said, "and she seemed to be very much on your mind earlier this evening. Maybe she still is."

Lee opened his mouth to deny it, but decided that the truth was better.

"I've been concerned about her lately," he said carefully, "but she and I aren't dating. We only work together."

Leslie gave another thoughtful nod. "Maybe you're right. Maybe we should call it a night. We could both use some sleep."

"I'll walk you out," Lee said.

Suddenly, he was eager for this evening to be over.

As he walked Leslie to her car, she said, "Lee, I'd like you to think about what I said. And if you decide not to go to the embassy party, I'll understand."

"Leslie—" Lee started to say, but she hushed him.

"Just think about it. I'd like you to be there, but only if you're going to be there mentally as well as physically."

Lee watched Leslie drive away before heading back inside. Her words had echoed Amanda's, and he had to admit that both of them had a point. He hadn't been completely there for either of them lately.

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Lee returned to his apartment and cleaned up the remaining dishes. Leslie had left the remainder of the cake for him to finish, but he didn't really want it. It was just too sweet and too rich. He put it away just in case he changed his mind later.

It was just a little after nine o'clock, but it felt much later. Lee was exhausted, but he doubted that he would be able to sleep. Amanda was still very much on his mind. Things were all wrong, and he didn't know what to do about it.

An image of Billy flashed into his mind. "Talk to her!"

Lee grimaced. That hadn't turned out so well earlier.

He'd had to say it. He'd had to tell her the truth. Why couldn't she see that if O'Keefe had had the chance, he would have shot her before shooting him? He'd already been disarmed. She was the one still holding a weapon. If she hadn't made that lucky shot, O'Keefe would have killed her as fast as he could to prevent her from shooting again. And there would have been nothing Lee could have done to save her.

She was a good 50 feet away from him behind a chain-link fence. Too far for Lee to reach, behind a barrier that would let a bullet through but that he would have to struggle to get over. If she'd been wounded, would he have been able to reach her in time to save her life? Or would she have died because he hadn't been with her, protecting her?

That was what she'd meant when she left the Agency, wasn't it? He was there, but not really with her, just like he hadn't been with her mentally during this week when he'd been seeing Leslie. Just like he hadn't been with her during the bombing.

Lee rubbed his eyes, but the vision of the wreckage that was left after the bomb went off at the Save the Bay rally stayed with him. Even worse, the visions of what could have happened to Amanda continued to haunt him. If she had died . . .

Lee shook his head. He didn't want to think about it, but how could he not think of it? First, he had let her try to finish Spring Cleaning on her own, and she could have been killed by a bomber. Then he'd missed that look of hers, and she had charged to his rescue, almost charging into a bullet to do it.

"Stop it!" Lee told himself. "Amanda is _alive_. She's alive and okay. Just hungry and probably sleepless tonight."

That part wasn't okay. And there was no way he could get any sleep tonight until he did something about it.

Lee had picked up the phone without really thinking about it and dialed Amanda's number from memory. As the phone rang, he tried to think of what to say to Amanda. What had Leslie suggested? Something to show that he appreciated her work?

"Hello?" Amanda's voice said.

"Hi," Lee said. It was all he could think of at the moment.

"Oh, hi," Amanda said. "Is something happening?" She didn't sound angry, just puzzled.

"Uh, no," Lee said, thinking quickly. "I was just calling to, um, ask what your plans were for tomorrow."

"I don't really have any," Amanda said.

"Oh, well, I was wondering if you'd like to come with me to talk to the Sullivans," Lee said.

"Talk to the Sullivans?" Amanda asked. "I thought that Elizabeth was in the clear—"

"She is!" Lee said quickly. "Everything is fine. I just thought that you might like to visit her. What you did for her was really great. She'd probably like to thank you in person."

Amanda, sounding more relaxed, said, "Yes, I would like the chance to see her again and see how she's doing."

"I'm sure that she's doing much better now, thanks to you," Lee said.

"Thanks to us," Amanda corrected him.

"But especially thanks to _you_."

"Thanks, Lee," Amanda said in her shy, accepting-a-compliment voice. That tone was one that Lee liked.

"How are you doing this evening?" he asked.

"I'm alright. You?"

"Fine. I'm going to turn in soon. I should let you go so that you can be rested for tomorrow."

"Yes, I should go to bed soon."

"Are you feeling okay?" Lee asked. He wasn't sure if he should ask whether she'd eaten or not.

"I'm fine," Amanda said.

She sounded a little puzzled again. Maybe he had overreacted about her nail-biting. Or maybe she just didn't want to talk about it.

"Sleep well, Amanda." It was the only thing he could think of to say.

"You, too," Amanda said. "Goodnight, Lee." Her soft, gentle tone was back. The sound of it made Lee feel better.

"Goodnight," Lee said. "Pleasant dreams."

Lee relaxed after he hung up. Hopefully, their brief conversation had helped Amanda to feel better, too. Also hopefully, Amanda would take his advice and make sure that she got a good night's sleep. The prospect of visiting Elizabeth Sullivan would help.

As he got ready for bed, he wished that he'd reminded Amanda to eat something. Although, after the way he'd spoken to her earlier, she might not have liked being lectured about her eating habits.

"What about dinner tomorrow night?" Lee thought. If Amanda was free, he could invite her over, give her a good meal, and make sure that she wasn't still feeing bad about what he'd said before.

Of course, tomorrow was the night of the embassy party.

The more Lee thought about it, the more he realized that he didn't want to go. It would be more work than pleasure for Leslie, and therefore a strain for him. Besides, he knew that his mind was still going to be on Amanda, and Leslie wouldn't want him there if his attention wasn't totally on her. If his mind was going to be with Amanda, the rest of him might as well be there, too.

He got into bed, still thinking of asking Amanda to dinner. Steak sounded nice. With a potato, for the carbs. No Leslie. And no shop talk. Amanda needed to get her mind off of work. He'd enjoy just talking with her about ordinary things, too. They'd catch up on Amanda's activities during the past week when he'd been distracted. Just him and Amanda and a nice, juicy steak. With a baked potato on the side. They would both probably sleep better afterward.


	2. No Shop Talk

**Author's Note:** So many people asked me to do the dinner scene from Over the Limit to finish up my filler story that I decided to do it (as Singerme pointed out, they already gave me the menu :P). Special thanks to Rose Stetson for being my beta. :) More thanks to the people on Iwsod's blog: Check out what Dotty's class is about! I decided to leave the results vague so there will still be room for debate. ;)

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The ear-to-ear grin that Lee had worn ever since he and Amanda had left the Sullivans' boat was starting to hurt his face a little, but he couldn't stop smiling and didn't want to. Amanda was sitting beside him in the 'Vette, and they were on their way to the grocery store to pick up what they needed for tonight's dinner. It had all worked out so much better than he could have predicted.

The trip to visit the Sullivans had gone smoothly. Elizabeth was happy to see Amanda, and Amanda was relieved that everything was going well for them now. As they walked away from the Sullivans' boat, Amanda was relaxed and cheerful, so Lee decided to go ahead and ask her about dinner.

After Amanda's sore feelings the other day, he hadn't been sure whether or not she'd accept the invitation. When he asked her if she'd like to have dinner with him, she pointed out that the embassy party was tonight. Lee shrugged it off casually, saying that Leslie would be working at the party and that she had her own invitation. Leslie was still an awkward subject, and he didn't really want to discuss her much with Amanda if he could help it.

The suggestion of steak and baked potatoes with no shop talk seemed to go over well with Amanda. Not only had she accepted, but she had agreed that they didn't do things like that often enough. He had actually laughed out loud at how easy it had been to issue the invitation and how quickly Amanda had accepted it.

"Do you need to call your mother and tell her you won't be home for dinner?" Lee asked.

"No," Amanda said. "Actually, I'm on my own for dinner tonight, too."

"Where are your mother and the kids?" Lee asked as they headed back to his car.

"The kids are still at Tommy Johnson's house, and Mother has another of her meetings tonight," Amanda said.

"Tommy Johnson was having a birthday party or something, wasn't he?" Lee asked casually.

"Yes, he's having an all-weekend sleepover for his birthday," Amanda said. "I can't believe that his mother is willing to put up with six boys for the entire weekend, but it's kind of a special thing."

"Why?" Lee asked.

"His uncle works for a game company, and he's given Tommy some copies of games they've been working on that haven't been released yet. I don't really understand the games myself, but the boys love them, and they can't pass up the chance to spend all weekend playing them with Tommy."

"Plus, they probably get bragging rights, being the first kids at their school to play them, right?" Lee asked. Even with his strange childhood, he could remember kids on the bases where he'd lived with his uncle bragging about being the first to get a new record or a new issue of some comic book series that everyone was reading.

"Right," Amanda said, laughing. "Although, I think that Tommy's uncle is also using them as a test audience for the games. Jamie says that he'll be staying at Tommy's house all weekend, helping with the party."

"And probably taking notes on how they like the new games," Lee agreed. "Smooth move. He gets to be a hero to his nephew and his nephew's friends with his cool presents, and he gets his test audience to boot."

"At least Tommy's mother has back-up dealing with the boys all weekend," Amanda said with a grin. "So, where are we going for dinner?"

"My place."

"_Your_ place?" Amanda raised her eyebrows. "I thought that you meant dinner at a restaurant."

"If you'd rather do that, that's okay," Lee said, although he was really hoping that she wouldn't want to do that. "But, really I prefer cooking steaks myself."

Amanda was giving him a puzzled look. They both knew that Lee often ate out at restaurants, but with both of them in jeans, they weren't really dressed to go out anywhere. Besides, after the difficult week they'd had, all he really wanted was some quiet time with Amanda. Just Amanda.

"Are you telling me that you actually have food at your place?" Amanda asked.

"Not yet," Lee admitted, "but we can easily take care of that." He flashed Amanda one of his most charming grins.

When she smiled back, he knew that he'd won her over to the idea. Lee steered the 'Vette in the direction of his favorite grocery store.

At the grocery store, they picked up the steaks, a couple of potatoes, and some lettuce and dressing for side salads. The salad was Amanda's idea. Like any good mother, she pointed out that they should have a veggie with their meal. But, salad was a good suggestion, and Lee was glad that she thought of it. As an afterthought, Lee also picked up some ice cream for dessert. He didn't really want any of Leslie's leftover cake, and he didn't want to give any to Amanda, either.

"Anything else for you and your wife today?" one of the clerks asked him.

Lee chuckled at Amanda's shy, embarrassed look. It was a natural misunderstanding. A man and woman shopping together would typically be a married couple. Rather than correct the clerk, however, Lee just said, "No, thanks. We're fine."

Amanda was blushing now, and Lee was enjoying watching her reaction. She always got embarrassed because she actually cared about what other people thought and the false impressions they might have. None of that mattered to Lee at all. He knew who he was and what he was doing, and if others misunderstood, that was their problem.

For the rest of the way to Lee's apartment, they chatted more about the games Philip and Jamie were into. Lee understood less about them than Amanda did. One had something to do with robots from outer space and another involved wizards fighting strange creatures that Lee had never heard of. It didn't really matter. It was just nice to sit back and listen to Amanda talking to him. They really hadn't done enough of that lately.

After they carried the groceries up to Lee's apartment, Amanda insisted on helping him with dinner. Lee had cooked for women before and had women who had cooked for him, but preparing food alongside another person was different. In some ways, it was a little awkward, moving around another person in the kitchen, occasionally bumping into her, but it was kind of cozy, too.

Maybe a little too cozy, he thought as he bumped into her for the third time.

"Oops, sorry," Amanda said, moving around him.

"It's okay," Lee said.

It really was okay. On the one hand, it was a little annoying that he couldn't move around as freely as he usually could, but on the other, clumsily bumping into her like that didn't make him feel at all self-conscious. Amanda was comfortable and familiar. He had spent plenty of time with her with at work, sometimes in close quarters like in his car, and his partner's presence was always reassuring.

After the dangers she had been in recently, it felt good having her right there, in easy reach of an accidental touch. In fact, if he turned around right now, his head would be right above her brunette curls, and he would smell that shampoo that she liked . . .

Lee shook his head and took a hasty glance at Amanda. She was tearing up pieces of lettuce for the salad and hadn't noticed that he'd apparently been staring mindlessly at a raw potato for the last two minutes while his mind drifted.

While Lee prepared the steak and potatoes, Amanda finished fixing the salad. She put it into a bowl to chill in the refrigerator while the steak and potatoes were cooking.

"Anything else I can help you with?" Amanda asked.

"Why don't you put on some music?" Lee suggested.

The kitchen was a little cramped for two people, and some music would be nice with dinner. He didn't have to tell Amanda where to find his record collection. She already knew from past visits to his apartment and past attempts to tidy up the place. Lee smiled a little at the memory.

It was also no surprise to him that she passed up his Rolling Stones albums in favor of the only Duke Ellington record he owned. He knew that she had a special fondness for Duke Ellington because her parents liked him. Hearing his music made her think of happy times from her childhood. Even though Lee had bought the record before he had met Amanda, he now associated it with Amanda more than with the friend who had originally recommended it to him. For the first time since he'd bought the record, he wondered if he should get another one. It wasn't his favorite style of music, but Amanda would be happy to see it the next time she came over.

Amanda came back into the kitchen and watched him as he continued preparing dinner.

"Are you sure there isn't anything I can do to help?" she asked.

Really, there wasn't much left to do. Timing the cooking of the steaks was going to be easy. Lee knew that both he and Amanda liked their steaks medium-well, so they would both be ready at the same time. Mostly, he wanted Amanda to relax.

"Nope. You can just keep me company," Lee said, giving her a wink.

The cute blush returned to her cheeks. He loved how easy it was to make her do that.

"So what kind of meeting does your mother have tonight?" Lee asked.

"Well, it's actually more of a class. There's a program at the community center called 'Know Your Personality Type.' It lasts for three nights in a row, and this is the third night."

"'Know Your Personality Type?' Doesn't she know her personality type already?"

Although, now that he thought about it, Dotty's personality _was_ somewhat difficult to define. Not that he was going to say that to Amanda.

"They have you answer questions about different things, like the way you make decisions and whether you like to plan things or be spontaneous, you know, stuff like that, and then they kind of rate you on your different qualities and come up with your personality type," Amanda explained.

Lee vaguely remembered taking a similar kind of test when he'd joined the Agency. It was probably still somewhere in the file containing his psych profile, but he couldn't remember what the results were. At the time, he hadn't much cared.

"What's it for?" he asked.

"It isn't really for anything specifically," Amanda said. "Mother's just doing it as a special interest project. She says that understanding personality types can give you a lot of insight."

"I didn't realize that she was so introspective."

"Well, actually," Amanda said conspiratorially, "I think she's really interested in the topic of tonight's meeting."

"What's that?"

"Romance between different personality types." Amanda giggled. "There are a couple of good-looking gentlemen in the class, and I think Mother's hoping that one of them will be her type."

Lee laughed.

It occurred to him that Amanda's mother might have another ulterior motive for wanting to know about romance and personality types. It could be another step in her on-going mission to find a new husband for Amanda.

"Has she tried to figure out your personality type yet?" he asked casually.

"She tried to give me the test, but she got frustrated when I had trouble choosing between the options she tried to give me."

"Like what?"

"Well, one of the questions asked whether I thought that children should daydream or make themselves useful, and I said that I thought both were important. Mother kept saying that I had to pick one or the other, but I don't see why. After all, they could daydream while they do their chores, can't they?"

Lee grinned. You just had to love Amanda's logic.

"So she couldn't figure out what personality type you are?"

"Eventually, she figured something out, but she's still analyzing the results. She says that she'll tell me when the class is over."

Along with whatever her assessment of Amanda's ideal romantic type turned out to be, Lee thought darkly as they set the table and started bringing out the food. It was no secret that Dotty wanted Amanda to get married again, and Lee disapproved of Dotty's romantic recommendations for Amanda. Even though it was really none of his business, he'd been relieved when Amanda had finally dumped what's-his-name the weather boy. Whatever type he was, Lee was sure that he wasn't the type that would properly take care of a woman like Amanda. Guiltily, Lee remembered that he hadn't done very well at that recently himself.

As he watched a smiling Amanda setting out the salad and fetching wine glasses for the two of them, Lee wondered if he should check what his file said about his personality type.

Amanda went into the kitchen to get the rest of the food, and Lee studied the table settings. Quickly, he shifted his place setting so that it was next to Amanda instead of across from her. That felt better to him. Amanda looked surprised when she came back with the steak and potatoes, but she didn't say anything about the change in the seating arrangement. Lee just poured the wine for both of them and lit the candles in the middle of the table.

All through dinner, he kept a careful eye on Amanda. She ate well and seemed in good spirits. To all outward appearances, she seemed to have forgotten their earlier argument. However, Lee doubted that was the case.

"Would you like some more salad?" Lee offered.

"No thanks, I'm fine," Amanda said.

"More wine?" Lee was restricting himself to a single glass because he would be driving Amanda home later, but there was no reason why Amanda couldn't indulge a little more.

"No, thank you," Amanda said. "Dinner was really wonderful."

"Just meat and potatoes," Lee said modestly.

"Well, it was just was I needed," Amanda said.

"Good." That was just what Lee needed to hear.

Then, Amanda looked uncomfortable. "Um, Lee, if this dinner was meant as an apology . . ."

"Stop!" Lee held up his hands. "You don't have to say anything. I said no shop talk, and I meant it."

"I just wanted to say that if it was an apology, it was a good one."

"I'm just glad you're alright," Lee said softly. "I was really scared for you."

There, he said it. But, this time, it was the right thing to say.

"I'm glad you're alright, too," Amanda said. "I was worried about _you_."

Lee gazed silently at Amanda. She looked so delicate sometimes, slim with those big brown eyes and cute little nose . . . well, the point was that she looked like someone who needed to be protected, but instead, she was determined to protect everyone else.

For a long moment, they held each other's gaze. Then, Amanda looked away, blushing.

"No more shop talk, right?" Amanda said.

"Right," Lee said. "Let's go sit on the couch and listen to the rest of the record."

The record was nearing the end, but there were a couple of songs left to go.

The two of them settled comfortably next to each other on the couch. They listened to the music quietly for a few minutes, but Lee still felt the urge to talk to Amanda. It felt good to have just the two of them talking together again.

"So, has your family been doing anything else interesting lately?" he asked. The question felt a little odd. It wasn't one that he usually had to ask because Amanda usually just told him everything. In fact, she might have already told him everything when he wasn't paying attention.

"Not really," Amanda said. "How about you?"

The question had slipped out automatically, and Amanda immediately looked embarrassed. She knew exactly what he'd been up to lately, and neither of them really wanted to discuss Leslie.

Fortunately, there was one thing he'd done recently that Amanda didn't know about.

"I had a dance lesson a few days ago," he said.

"Dance lesson? You already dance well."

Lee smiled at the compliment. "Well, you have to practice to keep your skills sharp, and sometimes I learn something new." It gave Lee a good idea. "Why don't I show you?"

"Right now?"

"Why not? The music's still playing."

Lee stood up and held out his hand to Amanda. Shyly, she took it.

There wasn't a lot of room in his apartment for dancing, and the music wasn't the same as the music from his dance lesson, but Lee was a skilled dancer. He kept Amanda close, murmuring instructions to guide her through the steps and preventing her from bumping into the furniture.

Between their personal conflicts and Amanda's recent close calls, it was reassuring to Lee to be able to hold her like this. She was warm and safe in his arms. He'd made sure that she'd had a good meal, and she was relaxed enough to move easily with him as he guided her through the steps of the dance. In short, for the first time in awhile, he felt that all was well between them.

Toward the end of the song, he decided that they should have a big finish.

"Get ready to for the dip," he said with big grin.

"Dip?"

Lee kept a firm hold on Amanda, wrapping one arm around her waist and placing his other hand on her upper back to support her.

"Here we go!" he said, lowering her into the dip.

Amanda gasped as she dipped backwards and giggled as Lee brought her suddenly upright. She clung to him as she regained her balance.

"Lee!"

"Fun, huh?" he teased her.

It was fun, holding Amanda in his arms as she laughed and hung onto him.

"Let's sit down for awhile," Amanda said, still laughing. "I need to catch my breath."

The two of them collapsed onto the couch as the record ended. Amanda's face was red, possibly from the dip or all the laughing or . . . maybe she just needed to cool down a little.

"Want some ice cream?" Lee asked, remembering their dessert.

"Sure," Amanda said.

Lee went to the kitchen and returned with two dishes of ice cream. Amanda had started to nod off while he was gone, but as Lee approached, she jerked herself awake.

"Are you okay?" Lee asked gently.

"Sorry," she said. "I'm just kind of tired this evening."

Lee had hoped that his phone call last evening had helped Amanda to sleep better, but maybe she'd had some insomnia anyway.

"But, I think I'll feel better after some ice cream," she said, eyeing the dishes Lee was holding.

They ate dessert in silence, but it was a comfortable silence, the kind of silence between two good friends who had spent a nice evening together and had run out of things to say but were still enjoying each other's company.

Amanda set down her empty dish and leaned back on the couch looking relaxed and sleepy. Much as Lee hated to end the evening, it would be awkward if Amanda fell asleep on his couch.

"Do you want me to take you home now?" he asked.

Amanda glanced at her watch and nodded. "I shouldn't be out too late tonight."

It was a little chilly when they got outside, so Lee handed Amanda his jacket before helping her into the car.

"Oh, that's okay," Amanda said. "It's only a short ride home. I'll be okay."

She tried to hand the jacket back, but Lee wouldn't take it.

"Just put it on," Lee said. "I'll get it back from you when I drop you off."

"Thanks," Amanda said, letting Lee wrap the jacket around her shoulders.

The drive to Amanda's house was also quiet. Lee didn't try to start a conversation. Amanda's quietness was proof of just how tired she was. He decided to just let her rest and spent the ride congratulating himself on a successful evening. Even more than offering an apology to Amanda for his neglect, this evening had been about making her feel better, and it appeared that he had succeeded.

A short while later, he pulled up near Amanda's house. He couldn't park immediately in front because her mother would ask questions.

He turned to look at Amanda and saw what he'd already suspected: she had fallen asleep at some point during the ride. Lee smiled quietly. Amanda was rarely quiet for so long except when she was completely unconscious. Her chatterbox tendencies used to get on his nerves when he first met her. Now, it was . . . well, still a little annoying at times, but also an endearing trait. It was one of the things that made Amanda, well, Amanda.

And he loved her.

That revelation should have surprised him, but it didn't really. The fact that it didn't was the most surprising part. It probably would have surprised him a few months ago. A couple of years ago, it would have shocked him. But, he'd had time to sort out not only his first impressions of Amanda, but also his second, third, and fourth ones. He knew all of her little habits, could tell when she was unhappy about something, and knew all her favorite foods and what her favorite childhood book was. He worried about her when she didn't eat properly and wanted to brain any man who paid too much attention to her. Any real threat to her life scared him to death. He just loved her.

Maybe nothing would ever come of it. Amanda had two children and her mother to think of, and Lee didn't know if he could ever fit into that domestic scene. It might take him a little longer to decide for certain whether he wanted to. He didn't even know for sure if Amanda would want him to.

For now, it would be enough to enjoy her friendship. The last thing he wanted to do was ruin their partnership. From now on, he was going to pay more attention to her, take better care of her, and try to keep her safe as much as possible. That was pretty much a full time job in itself.

It suddenly occurred to Lee that he had been staring at Amanda for awhile. Fortunately, she was still asleep and didn't know that he'd been staring. She was adorable, bundled up in his jacket, fast asleep. She looked so peaceful, he hated to wake her, but they couldn't sit out in his car all night.

He gently brushed a finger down her cheek. Amanda's eyes fluttered open. She looked around, confused.

"You're home," Lee said. "Time to wake up."

"Oh." Amanda rubbed her eyes and sat up straighter.

"I should give you your coat back." She shrugged it off and passed it over to Lee.

"I'll wait here until I'm sure you're safely inside," Lee said. "Goodnight, Amanda."

"Goodnight, Lee."

Lee watched Amanda carefully as she walked up to her front door and unlocked it. Even after she went inside, he waited to make sure that all was well. A couple of minutes passed and nothing happened, so he started driving home.

Alone in the car, his thoughts turned back to Leslie. He hoped that she had enjoyed her embassy party in her new dress. He hoped that she wasn't too upset about him skipping out her, although she had kind of thought he might, had even suggested it herself.

But Lee wasn't really sorry for missing the party. He hadn't even thought much about Leslie that evening. If he had gone with her to the embassy party, his evening would have consisted of endless introductions and little or no time to even share a dance. He'd had a much better time with just Amanda. As nice as Leslie was, he just didn't feel the same way about her as he did about Amanda.

The best part of the evening was knowing that he had repaired their relationship. Now that she was feeling better, he was feeling better, and he was sure that Amanda would sleep well tonight.

Lee slept very well himself. He fell asleep thinking about his next "no shop talk" dinner with Amanda. After all, she'd agreed they should do more of that. His dreams were full of dancing, with a woman who looked good in either a black evening gown _or_ in jeans.


End file.
